Wanke sentenced to 14 years on burglary charge

Thursday

Aug 7, 2008 at 12:01 AMAug 7, 2008 at 6:21 AM

Calling Richard Wanke Jr. a conceited man who brazenly robbed people for personal gain, Judge Joe McGraw handed down a 14-year prison sentence for burglary today to the man whom police since have linked to a murder investigation.

Corina Curry

Calling Richard Wanke Jr. a conceited man who brazenly robbed people for personal gain, Judge Joe McGraw handed down a 14-year prison sentence for burglary today to the man police have since linked to a murder investigation.

The sentence is the maximum allowed under state law given extended sentencing options, for which McGraw found Wanke eligible because of past burglary convictions.

“You are intelligent, educated, come from an intact family,” McGraw said. “You have used your skills and abilities to make yourself a successful burglar, a successful thief. I believe there is a measure of conceit on your part, Mr. Wanke, that you are smarter than law enforcement.”

Wanke, 47, of Rockford, received the sentence for stealing a laptop computer from a Rockford College professor in 2006.

The 2007 burglary conviction and sentencing received increased attention by the public, media and area law enforcement officials because of Wanke’s suspected involvement in the Feb. 6 shooting death of his former court-appointed attorney, Gregory H. Clark.

Clark, 60, was shot multiple times in the back that afternoon as he cleared snow from the sidewalk in front of his Rockford home. Wanke was free on bond at the time. Court records indicate that Wanke was at odds with Clark and wanted the burglary conviction reversed based on ineffective assistance of counsel, among other complaints. Wanke, in an interview earlier this week, denied any involvement in Clark’s death.

Wanke sat quietly and said little during the two-hour hearing. He declined the opportunity to make a statement.

Police believe Wanke and his landlord and former girlfriend, Diane Chavez, 49, are involved, but neither has been charged in connection with the crime. According to statements in court hearings for both Chavez and Wanke, police have provided prosecutors with eyewitness accounts placing them and the vehicle they shared at the scene of the shooting and are awaiting forensic testing.

Today, Wanke’s new court-appointed attorney, Glenn Jazwiec, presented statements on Wanke’s behalf from two pastors, two of Wanke’s friends and Wanke’s sister. The statements were entered as evidence in mitigation, but were not read aloud.

Jazwiec called Wanke “a caring friend who tried to do good in life” and supported peaceful activities and the arts.

McGraw said the statements on Wanke’s behalf describe him as a “positive” and “benign” person but he believes Wanke is “a man with two faces.”

While Jazwiec described Wanke’s criminal history as limited, prosecuting attorneys presented testimony from police who investigated multiple burglaries in Winnebago and DeKalb counties in the 1990s involving Wanke.

Kenneth Brown of Rockford, one of Wanke’s burglary victims from 1991, said he was relieved that he received a harsh sentence.

“He violated the safety of our home,” Brown said. “He was a friend. He came to our house. He had dinner with us. We never felt completely safe after that.”

Wanke’s 14-year prison sentence, for which he’s eligible for day-for-day credit for good behavior, will be followed by two years of mandatory supervised release, McGraw said.

Prosecuting attorney Margie O’Connor said she was pleased with the sentence.